CHICAGO – Giants GM Brian Sabean said he was “skeptical” of adding any fresh blood prior to the end of August because the waiver period is progressing so slowly.

“Teams are trickling players out,” Sabean told me prior to Tuesday’s game at Wrigley Field. “We’ve been active to block and also to try to force some conversation, and neither has worked. Anybody of consequence is getting claimed.”

So … no help for the stretch run?

“I’m skeptical, I really am, the way things are going,” Sabean said.

It’s been a weird year around baseball. The Giants were 42-21 before coming back to earth like a cannonball, but they aren’t the only ones. Even the A’s and Tigers, who dominated the trade deadline with an arms race that included deals for David Price and Jon Lester, are no longer in first place in their respective divisions.

In the NL West, the Dodgers are grabbing innings wherever they can find them – Kevin Correia, Roberto Hernandez, Justin Germano – to shore up a messy back half of their rotation.

Does it give Sabean hope that the Giants are just as capable as any other club of tearing off a hot streak?

“It’s a different year, but the teams that win the most series will go to the playoffs,” Sabean said. “That’s what we have to get back to doing, no matter who it’s against.”